collective

Pronunciation

• IPA ^(key): /kəˈlɛktɪv/

• Audio (UK)

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• Audio (US)

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• Hyphenation, US: col‧lec‧tive; UK: col‧lect‧ive

Adjective

Positive collective

Comparative more collective

Superlative most collective

1. Collective action, bargaining, and agreements are those that include a union.

   Through collective bargaining, we have been able to increase safety in the factory.

2. Collective goals, beliefs, feelings, etc. involve or are shared by the members of a group.

   We've made a collective decision to move on.

3. The collective amount or results are those when all the various parts are brought together.

   When we each contributed what we had, the collective amount was $313.23.

Noun

Singular collective

Plural collectives

1. (countable) A collective is a group of people with a shared goal.

   The band is a collective of musicians from across Canada.

2. (countable) A collective is kind of business owned by a group of people, often its workers, customers, or suppliers.
   • Synonym: cooperative

   She helped set up a writers' collective so independent writers could join and get health insurance.

3. (countable) A collective is a word that refers to a group of one type of thing, often animals.

   The collective noun for fish is "a school of fish".

Related words

• collect